The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1887-03-26
THE COUNTY LEGISLATORS.
On "a siumbering Volcano.

| Cullur circumstances, hoIe ih'PV''"n' ""'
exciting questions have never before pre-
scented themselves before any previous meet
ing of this body than doomed up before this
session with appalling aspect. The reputa-
tons Of grey haired men. who for hall
century had stood unblemished, had been
hercely assailed. Young men, whose pa
rents had been among the early settlers, al
ways noted rs u class for their iron-like IN
tegrity Of character, were said to be DEFAULT
era. Either those trusted public servants,
who had helped to make the county itself,
who have been lifetime engaged in building
il up, who had handled public money till 1t
amounted to millions, had been traduced by
personal hatred, partisan malice, or we're
, malgnet through Infamous, cold blooded,
sensational journalism, or, they had been
revealed as whted sepulchres The public,
overwhelmed with establishment, gave way
to indignation when the alleged "boodleism'
was discovered, were very indignant but
as from time to time these reports disagreed
and contradicted each other, and the calm.
unruiiled fronts Of the supposed culprits,
changed this sentiment into u feeling favor
! ing trial before condemnation. This is the
, sentiment Of the people generally, but indi'
viiuals differ as greatly; so all shades OF
opinion prevail, from kick EN- out and try
EN- afterwards" to forgiveness, accepting all
: on trust, or "what difference will II make in
, a hundred years from now? ?" The members
of the board represented oil the shades OF
opinion between the extremes and each sup
ervisor appeared last Monday filled TO near
the bursting point with schemes Of ven
g.ance, law, prosecution, moderation, com
: promise, mercy, or generosity, according to
his individual makeup, and every mother s
son Of them contained q speech which was
. Just boiling over and escaping as from an
5 overchargel steam chest in spite OF all
efforts. They greeted each other in lofty
words they bowed with stately politeness
and the chairman welded his gavel as II II
>. we're the symbol of oratory. They never
looked half 80 wise before, nor half 80 dan
gerous sort Of fierce calm pervaded
the room. Every one was full OF fire and
ready to jump into the "deadly imminent
q breach" as soon as 1t should open wide
0 enough. As the members passed each other
I there was ferocious look about them, sug
costing, beware don't touch me; I'm
loaded" They seemed to walk upon the
floor as in a crater, over a mass Of burning,
t blistering, scorching, seething, red-hot lava.
4 An angry word, sharp look, biting retort,
an IL told you So" would have produced an
"You're another and then-annihlatiOn
But somehow they kept clear of the dyna'
/ mite package of official wrong doing. else
the court house would have been blown sky
!, ward. Yet they did get into q pretty little
: skirmish on a side issue the very first after
noon.
|, Chairman Lewis raped for order at 2:3C
, oil az m ami pr a N : wprpi u
n their names, excepting Dresser, Gransden
Lauf, Mcintyre, OLoughln, Phillips and
Il Sawyer, the latter absent as missionary at
e Springfield, where the heather rage in an
: other shape. He should have remained here
q to make Rome howl. The minutes of the
special session were read. The chair want
ed them approved. Fades said, "No; they
y don't express what the committee to nego
e tate the county bonds understood they did.
f This committee went on TO negotiate the
bonds, but the chairman (Lewis) refused to
let us handle them. He said he and the
" clerk must execute them and then turn them
+ over to the county treasury, and they did so,
/ notwithstanding in order to raise the money
4 we actually had to gel them, take them to
= Chicago, get the money, and deposit it in
the county treasury.
Lewis called Green 20 the chair, and ex-
j. planned "The records are in accordance
y with the facts but | held that the board
could not appoint any Of its members to
= handle county money, and knew it when |
: went to Chicago with the committee to get
n the money"
! Fades: "Then the committee had no
power to negotiate bonds ~
Lewis: "Well-yes, to negotiate but not
? to handle them. That was the treasurer 6
!, duty
0 Norton: "When did the treasurer get the
+ right to this money-before it was negotiated
or when the money came to his hands,
Lewis: That's question; | have not
9 seen the law"
r Norton 81 can show it to you"
Fisher: There were two resolutions.
Hoffman was made one of the committee to
borrow this money, but he could not go to
Chicago, and Finlen was substituted, y
Fades: "The fact is, the treasurer bonds.
men would not let him lake them 10 Chicago,
but insisted they should be sent by express
and that would have cost Sl20 to $40"
Fisher corroborgted Fades, and added that
t Hoffman was sick, and there was no way
, hut for the committee to take the bonds, go
to Chicago and get the money. We had to
deliver them ON certain day, or all would
have stopped
; Griffin thought it a waste of time. The
, committee had done what was proper, and
their report should be approved, and 1t was
approved.
Fisher offered resolution, that the com
! mittee to settle with county officers settle
with none of them who have not kept their
books according to law and the instructions
of this board. lie stated that some of the
officers newly elected defy the board. There
was resolution at the last September ses-
sion forbidding deputy clerks to hold clerk
ships outside of the court house. Kelly, the
deputy probate clerk, was then and still is
city clerk of Ottawa. We ought to make our
resolutions mean something. The officers
must be made to respect them. The county
records in this Office are behind, because the
deputy is doing other business outside. The
resolution of September was read and Fish
ers resolution adopted.
Mclaughlin wanted to know 'if We have
county treasurer"
Lewis gave it up.
Mclaughlin wanted to know if the board
hasn't power to impeach q county officer 81
understand the treasurer has abdicated in